EGB June 2007

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June 2007

A Post-Occupancy Look at LEED Building PerformanceBy Cathy Turner, PE Are new "green" buildings delivering expected energy and water savings? A recent study provides an early look at the actual performance of 11 U.S. Green Building Council Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design- (LEED-) certified buildings in the Pacific Northwest...[MORE]

Turning Mechanical Systems Into Green MachinesBy Greg Smith Mechanical systems can account for as much as 50 to 70 percent of a commercial building's total energy consumption. Yet today's mechanical systems were built for a time of abundant energy and fresh water. Nearly all of the 130 million mechanical rooms in the United States are obsolete. Find out how adopting proven energy-saving measures and implementing green-building principles to mechanical systems can reduce energy costs by 20 percent or more...[MORE]

The Energy Resource Center To help reduce energy consumption and green existing buildings, the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA International) developed the Energy Resource Center on its Website. Here users can view green-related Websites and get tips on long-term energy savings, HVAC conservation, load shed, and lighting conservation...[MORE]

DOE Releases First Annual Report on US Wind-Power Market The Department of Energy released Annual Report on US Wind Power Installation, Cost, and Performance Trends: 2006 on May 31, which provides an overview of developments and trends in the US wind-power market. The report analyzes trends in the marketplace, including wind-power prices compared to wholesale electricity prices, project costs, turbine sizes, and developer consolidation. It also describes the increasing performance of wind projects, current ownership and financing structures, and trends among major wind-power purchasers...[MORE]

ESCO Industry Report The US energy-services-company (ESCO) industry, along with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) and National Association of Energy Service Companies (NAESCO), issued a report, A Survey of the US ESCO Industry Market Growth and Development from 2000 to 2006, which provides information on ESCO-market development, growth, and capabilities. The report was funded by the US Department of Energy's Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability and the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Weatherization, and Intergovernmental Program. The report attributes the increases in ESCO activity to customer response to rising energy prices and increased interest in energy-efficiency and climate-change-mitigation strategies, re-authorization of energy-savings performance contracts in the federal market, the adoption of aggressive energy-savings goals for federal agencies, and the ramping up of public-benefit and rate-payer-funded energy-efficiency and renewable-energy programs...[MORE]

Vatican building goes solar Cement panels of the 6,300-seat Pope Paul VI Auditorium and St. Peter's Basilca at the Vatican will be replaced by photovoltaic cells to convert sunlight to electricity. The cells will produce enough electricity to illuminate, heat, or cool the building, with excess energy fed into the network providing the Vatican with power...[MORE]

Last Day: LEED for Retail New Construction Public Comment Period The US Green Building Council invites the public to comment on the draft LEED for Retail -- New Construction rating system, which recently completed pilot testing. LEED for Retail was developed to meet the needs of retail design and construction projects, including lighting, sites, security, energy, and water. The public can comment on the draft-rating system through Wednesday., June 27...[MORE]

Solar Thermal Plant Now Online Acciona Energy announced that Nevada Solar One, a 64-mw solar thermal-power plant near Boulder City, Nev., is now online. Nevada Solar One relies on long lines of trough-shaped parabolic mirrors that focus the sun's heat on a receiver tube filled with a heat-transfer fluid, such as oil. The fluid is heated to about 750 F and is then used to produce steam, which drives a turbine and generator to produce electricity. The Nevada Solar One plant consists of 47 miles of parabolic mirrors arranged in a grid and will produce enough power to supply 15,000 average US homes...[MORE]

Engineering Green Buildings Conference & ExpoHPAC Engineering has announced the dates and location of its fourth annual Engineering Green Buildings (EGB) Conference and Expo. Touted as the engineering event for green design in hospitality, education, and government buildings, EGB 2007 will be held Sept. 17 and 18 at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.

With its focus on hospitality, education, and government buildings -- key sectors for construction growth and green design -- EGB 2007 is expected to attract engineers, architects, mechanical contractors, and building owners/operators from around the country. The conference portion of this year's event will provide training on energy efficiency, water conservation, indoor environmental quality, and sustainability. The expo area will enable vendors to display and demonstrate green characteristics and applications of their mechanical systems, components, equipment, software, technology, and services in a green-design setting...[MORE]

HPAC Engineering Co-Sponsor of Global Engineering Conference Designed for global consulting and design engineers, Carrier Corp.'s 10th Global Engineering Conference, co-sponsored by HPAC Engineering, features new technology and engineering topics in the heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) industry and will focus on designing and building for sustainability. The conference will take place April 9-11, 2008, at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas...[MORE]

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